All School

Connecting With The Parents Association This November

November 4, 2021

Thank You!
The PA extends hearty thanks to Renee Roach and Leslie Todero for organizing a wonderful Lower School Halloween Party! Thanks, also, to all of you who helped Leslie and Renee organize the party and to all the party-day volunteers! So much goes into planning these events, and it is awesome to have such great help. Well done, all!

Spruce Up, This Saturday Afternoon
Help spruce up Mr. Thomsen’s outdoor area. Saturday will involve more tidying up, removing weeds, saplings, and helping to improve the access to MPA’s prairie and pond for students to learn and enjoy. Saturday, November 13, 2-4 PM, meeting near the Upper School entrance. If you have any questions, please email Michelle Mick at michelle_wessely@yahoo.com.

Saturday Morning Parent Meet Up!
Join us Saturday, November 13 from 9:00-10:30 AM at Swede Hollow Cafe, 725 East 7th Street, St Paul, MN. Dropping Upper Schoolers off at debate or sports? Running errands during Saturday activities? Drop in and make some connections with other MPA parents. We will meet outside, weather permitting, or in the upper conference room. Hope to see you there!

Help Create This Year’s Middle School Café
The Parents Association invites you to envision the Middle School Café. This is a remarkable opportunity to help host the event at school, get into the building to catch a glimpse of your kid and meet new parents! The Middle School Café is a program aimed at building community within the Middle School and is anticipated the week of January 24 this coming year.

We’re forming the Middle School Café planning committee now which will brainstorm ways to use the $3,000 budget allocated by the PA Board. The planning committee will meet weekly from November 8-January 14 to brainstorm the Café theme and organize the plan to deliver the Café. During the week of January 17 the committee and volunteers will create the Café. Volunteers will also be asked to host the event and debrief during the week of January 24.

If you’re interested in being on the Middle School Café planning committee please email Christine Larson, PA Middle School Co-Lead at chrisandmatt1289@gmail.com. If you can’t commit to the committee, no worries, there will be advertised opportunities closer to the Café.

PA LS Co-Lead Position Open
The PA Board is looking for an additional member. The Lower School Co-Lead position is currently open. As a Lower School lead, you would be working in tandem with Michelle Mick to create community and connect people throughout MPA. Lower School Leads also attend and vote at monthly board meetings, oversee and support the Lower School PA events, and serve as conduit between families and school administration. Contact Michelle Mick at michelle_wessely@yahoo.com if you are interested.

Microfunding Grants Available
Microfunding provides funds for projects and programs, existing or new. It is open to student organizations, teachers and parent volunteers. Requests must benefit the mission of the MPA PA. Requests that are recurring from year to year are discouraged. This program is supported by the Parents Association dues, which are paid by MPA families. The PA encourages student groups to use these funds. We look forward to supporting MPA student organizations, and classrooms for many years to come. Please fully review the procedure and application forms before submitting. Applications are available here.

Congratulations, National Merit Scholars!

November 4, 2021

National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists and Commended Students

MPA is celebrating our talented and bright students! Elissa Frankel and Leo Yu have been confirmed as National Merit Semifinalists, and MPA also has 4 National Merit Commended students (Skyler Burnett, Rohit Iyer, Kaija Kunze-Hoeg, Ruby Schwieger). The semifinalist status is chosen from top 50,000 scorers in the country then the top 16,000 of those move forward as Semifinalists. The Commended students are acknowledged for their exceptional academic promise as demonstrated by their outstanding performance on the PSAT/National Merit Qualifying exam. Congrats Panthers!

Meet Retired Faculty Member Mary Beggin

November 4, 2021

Mary Beggin

Position while at MPA
Teacher of second, third, and fourth grade

How many years did you work at MPA?
20

What do you miss most about MPA?
I miss the children with their laughter, hugs, and their excitement that they showed each day! I also miss my colleagues and our chats each morning.

What have you been up to since leaving MPA?
I love my retirement! I am able to travel to see my children and grandchildren. I am sleeping in, staying up late, reading lots of books and making cards. I am finally able to get back to spending time with my husband and friends and enjoying outings. I am able to walk and exercise each day and feel so relaxed and happy. I also have been able to sub and do what I loved-just teach!

Vaccination Clinic At MPA Monday

November 3, 2021

Given the FDA authorization of COVID-19 vaccinations for children age 5 and older, MPA will be hosting an on-campus vaccination clinic on Monday, November 8 from 4-8 PM.

In addition to welcoming MPA community members, this clinic will be open to anyone and is being offered in partnership with Health Care Strong. Please help us spread the word by sharing this page with your network.

We will be offering Pfizer vaccinations for anyone age five or older (including adults) as well as Pfizer or Moderna booster shots for those who are eligible.

LEARN ABOUT HEALTHCARE STRONG >
ADVANCED REGISTRATION REQUIRED HERE >
PRINT, COMPLETE, AND BRING CONSENT >

 

DETAILS FOR ALL

  • The vaccination clinic will be led by Health Care Strong, with assistance from members of the MPA community who are medical professionals. All injections will be provided by a highly-trained medical professional and the 15-minute observation period will be staffed by medical professionals as well.
  • Please enter at door 2, the Atrium, which is to the left of the flag pole near the south entrance.
  • COVID-19 vaccinations are free and do not require insurance.
  • Do not attend the clinic if anyone in your household has had COVID-19 within the past 14 days, has any symptoms of COVID-19, or is currently quarantining due to close contact exposure.

DETAILS FOR CHILDREN

  • Any student or adult age five (on the day of the clinic) or older may be vaccinated at this event.
  • The second dose of this two-dose series will be administered on campus on Monday, November 29, 4-8 PM.
  • Students to be vaccinated should wear short-sleeved shirts and be rested. They should have had something to eat prior to arriving.
  • Students younger than 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and must present a vaccination consent form (print above and bring or sign at the clinic).

DETAILS FOR ADULTS

  • Students 18 or older do not need parental consent to be vaccinated.
  • Click here to determine your eligibility for a booster.

We’re grateful to share that 97% of our eligible students are vaccinated and 98% of our faculty and staff. That level of vaccination has contributed to our ability to keep the MPA community healthy, safe, and happy on campus. Just as we have with our families with older children, we strongly urge you to consider vaccinating your younger children at this time.

If you are unable to attend on Monday, please visit mn.gov/vaxforkids to learn more about other options and get information. We hope to offer future opportunities on campus as well.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to covid@moundsparkacademy.org should you have any questions or need any additional information or resources.

FDA RESOURCES & INFORMATION >
Emergency Use Authorization Ages 5-11 >
Emergency Use Authorization Ages 12+ >

Cross Country State Bound!

October 28, 2021

MPA’s Athletics are having a great year so far. Today we celebrate the fact that we have three Panthers who have qualified for State!

Isak Nightingale placed fourth in Section 4A
Margo Nightingale placed tenth in Section 4A
Teagan O’Keefe place ninth in Section 4A

MPA Boys 5th Place Section 4A & MPA Girls 6th Place Section 4A

Sections advances the top two teams plus the next ten individuals. Sections took place at Highland 9 Golf Course and the State race will be November 6 at St. Olaf College. This season the MSHSL has moved to 3 classes for Cross Country running. AAA–Largest, AA–Middle, A–Smallest. MPA athletes will run Boys at 12 PM, Girls at 1 PM and Awards at 1:45 PM!

Fall Campaign Kick-Off

October 28, 2021

Don’t Miss This Year’s MPA Fall Campaign Kick-Off

November 5, 2-4 PM under the tent in the West Parking Lot.

The MPA Fall Campaign volunteer committee invites you to attend a family gathering to celebrate MPA and the start of this year’s fundraising drive. Join us before, during and after drop off and bring your students along! We will gather to enjoy popcorn, cider, music, conversation and simply being together as an MPA community.

Learn more about the Fall Campaign and how the community joins together to bridge the gap between the cost of an MPA education and tuition.

Thank you to our volunteer parent committee members: Christine Larson (Chair), Heidi Baldwin, Jenn Gatti, Clarence Knox, Barry Madore, Bridget Mayer, Brett Schreiber, and Eric Whittington.

Searching For A Second Home

October 28, 2021

from Natalie Waters Seum, Director of Admission and Communication

Once per month throughout the school year, a member of the Institutional Advancement team will be writing a guest Head’s Message in place of Dr. Bill Hudson’s. We hope these articles provide families with additional perspectives from throughout the MPA administrative team.

If you’ve been through the admission process in recent years, you’ll recognize this question: “What drew you to MPA? What do you want out of a partnership with a school that will help your child grow and learn?” In short, we’re asking families what they are searching for in a new school community.

In my (brief) time in admission, I’ve come to realize there are three relatively simple things that most families seek. They want their child to be:

  • known and understood—not just a number;
  • loved for who they are—not who others thing they should be; and
  • challenged, appropriately—not too much and not too little.

When we searched for a kindergarten for my now-junior, Henry, we were looking for those very same things. My mother-in-law, Robbie Seum, was the Upper School director at the time and it was generally assumed that MPA would be the perfect fit for our family. The sticker shock spurred us to cast a wider net and I brought her with me to every open house in the east metro. Afterward, I wallpapered my dining room walls with Post-it flip charts that detailed the pros and the cons of every school we explored. In the end, it was her wisdom—the wisdom of a trusted friend—that truly helped us make the right decision. As friends, and family in this case, our values were aligned. She knew that we were searching for Henry to be known, understood, loved for who he is, and challenged appropriately and she knew that’s what MPA offered.

Fast forward to this week and I have the privilege of thanking 33 “Robbies” for recommending MPA to a friend, family member, or colleague who completed the application process and perhaps enrolled. Along with the thank you notes are either tuition credits or refunds that range from $125 to $1,000. I’m only able to thank the current families whom we are aware of—there are so many more of you recommending MPA in your networks that we’ll never be able to properly thank, so please consider this a personal note of thanks to you.

Both internal MPA data and external research show the importance and power of these community member referrals. Internally, it continues to be the most important way families come to MPA and the primary indicator that a family will eventually enroll. Why? It is all about aligning values. People in your network have similar values as you—you are searching for similar things—and they trust your recommendation as someone who has found what they are searching for. Nielsen data shows that “92% of respondents trusted referrals from people they knew.” None of this is news to me and it’s likely not news to you either because you very likely came to MPA due to a community member referral, just like we did.

The families of our 138 new students this year are having an incredible experience according to the New Family Survey. On a scale of 1-5, they rate their transition a 4.7 on average. They rate their experience with the admission process a 5.0. On that same survey, they named 40 faculty and staff who have been particularly helpful and 30 students—what an incredibly warm and welcoming community we have!

If you would like to share MPA in your network and perhaps receive a tuition credit next year at this time, please learn how here. Or, simply reach out to me at nwatersseum@moundsparkacademy.org. Sharing your love of MPA with people who are searching is, by nature, a generous act of kindness—you are trying to help the prospective family find a wonderful school community and a second home. And I promise we will take exceptionally good care of them.

Live Performance At MPA

October 28, 2021

Having our students engaged in visual and performing arts isn’t just about fostering an appreciation of the arts, rather it is about helping students develop the ability to practice perseverance, develop ingenuity, and understand that ideas can be expressed in more than just words. Through authentic experiences as musicians, performers, and artists each student has the ability to maximize their artistic potential, build confidence, and create beauty.

True hallmarks of Mounds Park Academy are the live performances where instrumental and choral students share their work with the broader MPA community. It is hard to believe that due to the pandemic the last live concerts held on campus were more than 19 months ago. We are thrilled to share that at this time we are not only holding in person performances, but that guests are invited to attend either in person or virtually. View the MPA calendar and add the upcoming performances to your calendars including the Upper School Instrumental Concert on Wednesday, November 3 at 7:30 PM.

To maintain alignment with the MPA health and safety protocols, each guest who plans to attend the live performances will be required to pre-register and provide proof of their COVID-19 vaccination (a picture or scan of their vaccination card) via email to covid@moundsparkacademy.org by 7 PM the night prior to the scheduled concert. If your vaccination card is already on file at MPA through athletics or other events, you do not need to send it again. If you have a medical or religious exception, please contact covid@moundsparkacademy.org with those details as we will provide information and work with you to obtain a clearance COVID-19 test so you may attend. Masking is required on campus.

All pre-registered guests will enter and exit through the Gallery on the south side of campus (door #3) and go directly to their seats in the Nicholson Center where the performances are held.

For the convenience and safety of our community, all performances will also be live streamed at the link below. Regardless of how you view the events, we are excited for you to enjoy the wonderful talent of our students.

JOIN LIVESTREAM
Password: 2051
There will not be a recording distributed afterward due to licensing restrictions.

IMPORTANT HEALTH & SAFETY NOTES REGARDING IN-PERSON ATTENDANCE

Please note that even though health and safety protocols are in place, band and choir performances are highly aerosolized activities. If any attendee develops symptoms within 48 hours of the performance, please contact covid@moundsparkacademy.org for guidance.

COVID-19 is a highly contagious and potentially life-threatening disease declared by the World Health Organization to be a global pandemic. Information about COVID-19 is continually evolving and subject to change. COVID-19’s highly contagious nature means that contact with others or contact with surfaces that have been exposed to the virus, can lead to infection. Additionally, individuals who may be infected with COVID-19, whether vaccinated or not, may be asymptomatic for a period of time or may never become symptomatic.

Aware of the foregoing, I am voluntarily attending the in person performance at Mounds Park Academy. To attend these concerts, I acknowledge and understand:

  • Given the many unknowns relating to COVID-19, it is not possible to fully identify or list each and every individual risk of contracting COVID-19;
  • MPA cannot limit all potential sources of COVID-19 infection.

Connect With The PA This October!

October 28, 2021

Lower School Halloween Party

We are so excited to be able to host a Halloween party again this year! Weather permitting, we are planning an outdoor party. We are happy to share that we can have parent volunteers again this year! We are in need of volunteers to help with setup, the individual parties, and/or clean up.

Masks are required for all visitors. Vaccinated and unvaccinated visitors need to stay home and not come to campus if experiencing covid symptoms as detailed in the screening app. Guests should maintain 3-6 ft. physical distancing when possible. Visitors must also report any symptoms 48 hours after being on campus for symptom response protocols.

Sign Up Here

Help Create This Year’s Middle School Café

The Parents Association invites you to envision the MS Café. This is a remarkable opportunity to help host the event at school, get into the building to catch a glimpse of your kid and meet new parents! The MS Café is a program aimed at building community within the Middle School and is anticipated the week of January 24 this coming year.

We’re forming the MS Café planning committee now which will brainstorm ways to use the $3,000 budget allocated by the PA Board. The planning committee will meet weekly from November 8- January 14 to brainstorm the Café theme and organize the plan to deliver the Café. During the week of January 17 the committee and volunteers will create the Café. Volunteers will also be asked to host the event and debrief during the week of January 24.

If you’re interested in being on the MS Café planning committee please email Christine Larson, PA MS Co-Lead at chrisandmatt1289@gmail.com. If you can’t commit to the committee, no worries, there will be advertised opportunities closer to the Café.

Save the Date for another Spruce Up!

If you enjoyed the last Spruce Up, we have another planned for November, to help Mr. Thomsen’s area. It will involve more tidying up, removing weeds, saplings, and helping to improve the access for students to learn and enjoy. Saturday, November 13, 2-4 PM, meeting near the Upper School entrance. If you have any questions, do send me an email at michelle_wessely@yahoo.com.

Remember to bring a mask to all events! Hope to see you there!

Lower School Division News

October 28, 2021

from Renee Wright, Lower School Director

End of Trimester 1 Report Cards
It is hard to believe that we are approaching the end of Lower School Trimester #1. The first trimester of the school year ends November 12. Teachers have been reflecting on your child’s progress and will begin putting together a written report to summarize that progress based on your child’s individual needs, the goals discussed at the October conferences, and grade level expectations and outcomes. It is important to remember that we don’t expect skill mastery at this point in the school year and believe it is important to acknowledge effort and the progress your child is making academically, socially, and emotionally. These reports will be sent out to parents for review via email on November 22, 2021. Make sure to take time to read the report card to get a good understanding of your child’s progress. Share all or part of the report card with your child in a developmentally appropriate manner. Remember to praise your child for their hard work and accomplishments. Engage your child in a conversation about school and share highlights from each subject area. Let your child know that school is important, and the key things leading to success are putting forth strong effort, persisting through challenges, making responsible choices, and making steady progress.

CHAMP Assembly
Kindergarteners and their teachers will host a virtual CHAMP Assembly on Wednesday, November 10. The focus of the assembly will be on respect and how it relates to accountability. Teaching students to show respect is essential to being a contributing member of our classrooms, school, home, community, and world. Kindergarten students will play an important role in delivering the message about respect at the assembly. Classroom activities and discussions will follow the assembly. The integration of CHAMP into classroom work increases engagement, helps students make connections, and encourages students to apply these skills in the global world.

How can parents teach and reinforce respect at home?

  1. Have rules in your home about respect.
  2. Give children a voice in decision making.
  3. Speak politely to your children.
  4. Give your children your full attention.
  5. Discipline your children with respect.
  6. Teach children manners.
  7. Try to understand why your child is being disrespectful or behaving in a disrespectful manner.
    *See the full article on respect at parents.com.

Halloween In Lower School
Halloween is a magical time in Lower School and promotes imagination, playfulness, and connection. Halloween will be celebrated at MPA on Friday, October 29. Students are encouraged to wear costumes. They must be non-violent, cannot include items that are made in the likeness of weapons, and must be respectful and non-offensive to culture, gender, and stereotypes. The Parent Association will host Halloween parties outdoors (weather permitting) for every Lower School grade level. Volunteer parents will help with the festive parties. Students will enjoy Halloween treats and Halloween games. Later in the day students will parade in costume for their family and friends on the outside sidewalk to spread some Halloween cheer. Family members and friends are welcome to join us for the parade at 2:30 PM that afternoon.

National Lights On Afterschool Event
In connection with the Works Museum our Panther Club staff will host a virtual family engineering night on October 28 at 6:30–7:30 PM. The focus of this event is a Creative Cardboard Challenge in honor of the National Lights on Afterschool initiative. Families can gather creative supplies from their home, use their imagination, and build innovative things out of cardboard. The ZOOM link for the event can be found on the MPA calendar.

Birthdays in Lower School
We continue to celebrate the birthdays of Lower School students. All students are allowed to have a non-uniform day on their birthday or half-birthday as a special privilege and treat. Each student is presented with a special gift from Mrs. Wright for their birthday to make them feel appreciated and special. Our Lower School birthday bulletin board is a way to share with our community the birthdays each month. This board is designed and displayed by our wonderful Lower School parent volunteers each month.

No Classes Monday, November 1
There are NO classes on Monday, November 1 due to a “grading day” for all faculty. PreK Panther and Panther Club will be open that day but note that pre-registration is required. Please contact the Lower School Office or Russ Purdy if you wish to register. Late registration fees may apply.

Dates to Remember

  • October 28: Family Engineering Night with the Works Museum at 6:30 – 7:30pm
  • October 29: Halloween Festivities and 2:30pm Parade
  • November 1: No Classes
  • November 24, 25, 26: Thanksgiving Break/NO CLASSES
  • November 29 – December 2: SPORTS WEEK in Lower School. (More information to follow)